CNN suffered a huge setback in a Florida court on Dec. 9 when a state judge denied the network’s efforts to dismiss a case against a Navy veteran who helped civilians flee the country in the final days of President Joe Biden’s disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Zachary Young was running a security consulting company in 2021 when CNN ran a story on The Lead with Jake Tapper implying that Young was illegally profiting from Afghan refugees trying to flee the incoming Taliban forces.
“Afghans trying to get out of the country face a black market full of promises, demands of exorbitant fees, and no guarantee of safety or success,” CNN correspondent Alex Marquardt reported.
Young was then singled out for participating in this illegal trade, with CNN putting his picture on the screen and claiming his company was demanding $75,000 to transport groups of passengers to Pakistan and $14,500 per person for passage to the United Arab Emirates. Marquardt then reported that Afghans were being exploited by exorbitant fees.
Marquardt reached out to Young before the story aired and Young responded, pointing out several factual inaccuracies in the story. But CNN aired it anyway.
Fast-forward to last week and a Florida judge held that CNN’s subsequent retraction of the story did not go far enough in undoing the damage caused by the original story and that Young was not considered a “political figure” under Florida libel law. Libel plaintiffs must show a defendant acted with “actual malice” to harm someone if they are considered a “political figure” and not just a private individual. “Actual malice” is a difficult standard for any plaintiff to prove.
Originally, in addition to the segment that aired on Tapper’s show, CNN also published an online article and promoted both the video segment and article on social media through its X account. Under Florida libel law, a retraction must be issued in a manner as close as possible to the original dissemination of false information. In this case, CNN only had Tapper issue a “correction,” not a “retraction,” and did not publish a written retraction or promote it on social media as it had done with the original story.
Young has not won his case yet. The judge’s ruling held only that Young’s claims were not deficient as a matter of law. It will now be up to a jury to decide on the facts whether CNN acted negligently in running the story. If so, the jury will decide what the damages should be.
It appears Young has a strong case. His lawyers have uncovered messages showing CNN’s own editorial staff said the story was “a mess,” “not fleshed out for digital,” and “full of holes like Swiss cheese.”
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“Once Young stopped cooperating with the investigative reporters, Marquardt had his fall guy,” the judge wrote. “And collectively they put together a narrative that despite having holes, would paint Young in the worst possible light knowingly using false information or at least in a reckless manner.”
CNN is getting its fingers burnt in this case. Perhaps it will be more careful before again favoring its narrative over the facts.